Best Cities for Photographers

When making -- not taking -- a picture, a professional photographer considers three main factors: the aperature, shutter speed and the ISO.

Here at ValuePenguin, we consider four... when determining which cities are best for these artistic pros to live and work: number of jobs, average salary, cost of living and location quotient.

To contribute to ValuePenguin’s coverage on careers, follow us on Twitter @VP_Careers. Please also feel free to use the comment section below.

Best Five Cities for Photographers

Of the 187 cities reporting data, these five earned our best score, comprising the factors of median salary, cost of living and location quotient. Speaking of salary, the 52,250 photographers employed in the U.S. in May 2014 earned $38,350 on average, or an hourly wage of $18.44, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

1. Honolulu, Hawaii

Beyond its natural beauty, Honolulu takes home the top spot because of the data. The state's capital recorded two top-10 ranks, in average annual salary (fourth) and location quotient (ninth). Its ValuePenguin score of 18 was the only sub-20 mark in the study and was 91% lower than its average. If natural light is a photographer's best friend, Honolulu has plenty of it, routinely ranking highly for its average percentage of possible sunshine.

2. Los Angeles, Calif.*

It shouldn't come as a surprise, but Los Angeles' photographers earn the nation's highest annual average salary ($66,160), a figure that is 93% higher than the study's average; no other city pays its full-timers more than $60,000. Los Angeles is the first of four California cities to crack our top 30; see the top 100 list below. The American Photographic Artists association is located north, however, in San Francisco.

*Statistical region includes: Long Beach and Glendale, Calif.

3. New York, N.Y.*

With the nation's most photographer jobs (3,350) -- more than Los Angeles (2,680) and Chicago (1,660), many others -- New York comes in third. The Big Apple is home to Wedding & Portrait Photographers International. It's also home to many tourist attractions that are of interest to camera-toting vistors: the 9/11 Memorial, the Statue of Liberty, the Booklyn Bridge and Times Square chief among them.

*Statistical region includes: White Plains, N.Y., and Wayne, N.J.

4. Santa Fe, N.M.*

The first of two "small" cities to crack the top five -- see our population breakdown rankings below -- Santa Fe climbed to fourth, in part, because of it registered top-10 marks in both average annual salary (10th) and location quotient (seventh). We take the latter metric to mean that there is a relatively higher demand for a photographer's services here, despite the fact that the BLS has a record of only 60 full-time positions within the city limits. Photographers short and long on experience appreciate Santa Fe's desert scenery. It's also home to the well-respected nonprofit CENTER.

5. Norwich, Conn.*

The most affordable city among our top five -- it's still 8% more expensive to live here than it is in the average American city -- Norwich narrowly bested Anchorage, Alaska, to round out our top five. An hour-plus drive's west is Waterbury, Conn., the birthplace of famed American photographer Annie Leibovitz.

*Statistical region includes: New London, R.I.

Population Breakdown

Although we adjusted for population in our rankings, it is still difficult to compare a small city to a large one. To account for this fact, we separated the safest cities into three categories: cities with populations less than 100,000 people, midsize cities with populations between 100,000 and 500,000, and larger cities with populations greater than 500,000. Here are our findings:

Top 100 Cities for Photographers

Rank

City

Average Salary

Jobs

Location Quotient

Cost of Living

Score

1

Honolulu, HI

$51,920

380

2.21

118

18

2

Los Angeles, CA

$66,160

2,680

1.71

116

21

3

New York, NY

$59,190

3,350

1.61

108

25

4

Santa Fe, NM

$48,350

60

2.37

140

41

5

Norwich, CT

$42,270

120

2.43

108

47

6

Anchorage, AK

$40,800

130

1.96

98

56

7

Toledo, OH

$42,830

200

1.70

133

57

8

Las Vegas, NV

$38,150

590

1.74

103

65

9

Oklahoma City, OK

$37,920

420

1.82

100

66

10

Providence, RI

$42,440

290

1.34

135

73

11

Myrtle Beach, SC

$37,120

120

2.59

135

77

12

Boston, MA

$49,440

720

1.04

119

86

13

Huntsville, AL

$43,430

100

1.22

93

91

14

Madison, WI

$37,550

190

1.45

100

94

15

Green Bay, WI

$35,220

150

2.35

86

94

16

Salt Lake City, UT

$36,360

390

1.51

102

97

17

Appleton, WI

$40,680

60

1.32

102

97

18

Atlanta, GA

$39,840

1,050

1.14

152

103

19

Saginaw, MI

$42,110

40

1.30

110

103

20

Phoenix, AZ

$38,530

810

1.14

98

108

21

Sacramento, CA

$43,930

330

0.99

115

108

22

Albuquerque, NM

$45,770

140

1.00

109

109

23

San Diego, CA

$37,320

640

1.25

109

109

24

Kansas City, MO

$36,420

510

1.30

143

109

25

Haverhill, MA

$33,120

90

2.88

102

114

26

Riverside, CA

$46,140

450

0.93

111

115

27

South Bend, IN

$37,410

60

1.33

92

116

28

Minneapolis, MN

$47,740

630

0.89

117

117

29

Lowell, MA

$37,140

60

1.30

101

122

30

Milwaukee, WI

$40,890

300

0.96

91

122

31

Reno, NV

$36,620

100

1.26

93

126

32

Fort Lauderdale, FL

$32,150

500

1.71

133

128

33

Chicago, IL

$36,350

1,660

1.15

157

129

34

Provo, UT

$32,280

130

1.76

96

130

35

Seattle, WA

$32,710

850

1.48

157

130

36

Tuscaloosa, AL

$36,300

50

1.28

82

137

37

Lexington, KY

$34,180

130

1.34

85

137

38

Allentown, PA

$32,560

180

1.35

88

142

39

Grand Junction, CO

$30,510

70

2.99

102

143

40

Dallas, TX

$35,980

910

1.05

108

143

41

Columbus, OH

$39,540

340

0.90

99

144

42

Warren, MI

$44,390

370

0.84

107

145

43

Framingham, MA

$33,000

90

1.44

90

146

44

La Crosse, WI

$39,150

30

1.08

97

146

45

Wilmington, NC

$29,990

140

2.56

140

148

46

St. Louis, MO

$33,900

600

1.19

105

151

47

Denver, CO

$38,930

450

0.88

107

152

48

Rochester, NY

$38,300

170

0.91

97

152

49

Nassau, NY

$35,380

510

1.05

125

154

50

Dayton, OH

$37,670

130

0.94

106

157

51

Champaign, IL

$38,010

40

0.98

90

158

52

Washington, DC

$49,310

630

0.69

113

160

53

Orlando, FL

$27,340

1,480

3.56

108

160

54

Fort Worth, TX

$31,880

470

1.29

200

160

55

Jacksonville, NC

$30,420

30

2.00

88

164

56

Baltimore, MD

$33,160

550

1.10

106

165

57

Cleveland, OH

$34,980

380

0.98

135

168

58

Jacksonville, FL

$31,790

290

1.27

168

168

59

Detroit, MI

$40,960

220

0.81

107

170

60

Des Moines, IA

$34,860

130

1.00

83

172

61

Springfield, MA

$48,460

80

0.74

110

175

62

Erie, PA

$28,750

90

1.88

115

175

63

Lansing, MI

$29,190

130

1.67

96

176

64

Ann Arbor, MI

$32,460

90

1.16

93

177

65

York, PA

$39,260

60

0.85

82

177

66

Nashville, TN

$35,070

300

0.93

79

179

67

Durham, NC

$31,640

140

1.24

137

179

68

Oakland, CA

$35,290

360

0.91

89

179

69

Charlottesville, VA

$46,570

30

0.80

94

180

70

Modesto, CA

$36,140

60

0.94

90

180

71

Oxnard, CA

$27,110

220

1.89

86

181

72

Montgomery, AL

$32,190

70

1.16

77

181

73

Davenport, IA

$28,360

110

1.61

86

181

74

Lancaster, PA

$29,680

120

1.38

91

181

75

Chattanooga, TN

$37,460

80

0.87

78

182

76

Little Rock, AR

$31,450

160

1.21

105

182

77

Burlington, VT

$34,640

50

1.09

94

182

78

Ogden, UT

$26,870

160

2.00

95

185

79

Newark, NJ

$36,580

310

0.84

94

188

80

Boulder, CO

$43,430

50

0.76

111

189

81

Camden, NJ

$33,060

190

0.97

100

189

82

Cincinnati, OH

$35,340

340

0.88

137

190

83

Greensboro, NC

$30,210

170

1.22

111

191

84

Tyler, TX

$36,970

30

0.91

104

191

85

New Haven, CT

$55,420

60

0.61

112

193

86

Eugene, OR

$29,560

70

1.35

144

195

87

Fargo, ND

$34,970

50

0.96

114

196

88

Wichita, KS

$27,350

170

1.47

86

199

89

Hartford, CT

$43,060

140

0.62

100

199

90

Grand Rapids, MI

$47,310

90

0.57

85

199

91

Portland, OR

$44,160

250

0.60

161

199

92

Charlotte, NC

$25,970

550

1.57

125

200

93

Reading, PA

$40,090

50

0.76

90

200

94

Omaha, NE

$25,640

310

1.74

120

201

95

Fort Collins, CO

$27,650

80

1.52

91

202

96

Miami, FL

$33,570

360

0.88

102

203

97

Charleston, WV

$30,680

60

1.14

88

203

98

Indianapolis, IN

$30,810

360

0.98

145

205

99

Springfield, MO

$42,660

50

0.69

155

205

100

Fayetteville, AR

$30,830

90

1.10

166

205

What’s It Like Being a Photographer in… ?

"Even though it’s saturated with photographers, it’s also saturated with opportunities. I have been offered work that I was not offered before just because I live here. And that’s a little crazy, because when I lived in Connecticut, New York City was only an hour away by car or train, but New Yorkers consider that “far away.” Now that I live here -- even though it might take me an hour to get to a location by subway -- those jobs get presented to me more often."

"Music city is where artists are either working or moving out. It's a brutal city to live in because there is so much heartbreak. That's why Nashville has a policy that if you moved to Nashville as a musician with your guitar strapped to your back, then they will buy you a one way ticket back home if you fall on your face."

"The urban sprawl is larger than any other city I have ever visited. Clients and vendors are very often late to meetings and appointments (myself included) because of traffic events and distance to travel. Just as an example, the product studio I am employed at is 27 miles from my home, which is not too much above the average here, and it takes somewhere between one to two hours to get there depending on traffic. My personal studio is another 13 miles from there. When I leave the product studio to drive that 13 miles, it takes another hour. The other unique aspect is the heat during the summer. Taking photographs outside is not only a difficult and slow process, but it can also be deadly with heat stroke and exhaustion."

"I always need to pack an extra shirt. The unique thing about being a photographer in Houston are the hot summer weddings where you're still obligated to go out in the midday heat for beautiful sunlit photos. I did a wedding two weeks ago where I was drenched, and I don't sweat easily. Luckily, I could swap shirts before my drive to the reception venue."

"Some people may automatically think of cowboy boots and the Alamo. However, my style is organic, and I love to exude a "hill country" style instead of the typical "country" look. That way, my style is appealing to a lot of different brides, not just someone who loves cowboy boots and hats."

"Naples, Florida has possibly the highest density of millionaires in the U.S. For that reason, photographers have incredible opportunities here, both as portrait/event type of photographers as well as photographic artists. Business is much easier if your clients can afford what you are selling. Wealthy people can be demanding, so you'd better know what you are doing and give excellent customer service. Photography has always been a luxury service, so it's nice to be where so many can afford it... The other unique thing about this area is that we are a vacation area, so there are opportunities for destination weddings and family portraits from visitors. Marketing is very different in this area because of this."

"I love the diversity of features to photograph nearby. I can go to beaches, L.A., the mountains, the dessert, fields, Disneyland and many other places within an hour from my house. Additionally, San Diego, Palm Springs, Joshua Tree, Yosemite, and San Francisco are all accessible within hours. I will never get tired of the different places I get to visit for my shoots."

"Being a photographer here is unique in a couple of ways. One is that we are home to world class Cornell University. That gives me many opportunities to work in academic and research environments that are not available everywhere. It also draws many famous people for events, which can be a fun to photograph. The other aspect of Ithaca is that it is a beautiful environment, and there are fantastic settings to take photos with clients, whether that be portraits, weddings or other events."

Methodology

These were the three key questions we asked in coming up with the list.

1. What can photographers earn in the city?

We ranked the best cities for photographers based on the median annual pay. Income is likely the most important factor people consider when starting their career or relocating elsewhere. A high salary in an expensive city, however, may be less attractive than a lower salary in an affordable town. Our next metric takes affordability into consideration.

2. How affordable is it to live in this city?

Now that we have the median salary, we’ll look next at the cost of living. The cost of living is a measure of how far earnings can be stretched. Cities with lower cost of living index numbers ranked higher in our study. For example, the average city is benchmarked at 100. A city with a cost of living index of 188, such as Honolulu, would mean that generally speaking, living expenses are 88 percent more expensive compared to the average city.

3. What is the location quotient for photographers in the city?

A place with a high median salary and low cost of living may seem perfect, but job opportunities may be limited. Our third factor accounts for this by favoring cities with high location quotients. Location quotient measures the concentration of photographers in an area as a percentage of all occupations, and then compares that to the national average. We interpret a higher location quotient to mean a relatively higher demand for a photographer's services.

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